Swiss Government Research Fellowships for South African Nationals 2018

The SAMRC invites research proposals from South African citizens or permanent residents for a PhD scholarships for a full time study opportunity at a Swiss university or an institution affiliated to a Swiss University in the field of health and/or clinical research.

Application Deadline: 15th December 2017

Eligible Countries: South Africa

To Be Taken At (Country): Switzerland

About the Award: This is an announcement of the inaugural Request for Applications (RFA) for PhD scholarships funded by the Swiss Confederation in partnership with the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) in an effort to further strengthen efforts towards growing health research capacity for South Africa.

Type: Research, PhD

Eligibility: The PhD Scholarships will be awarded for research to be conducted in the research field of Public Health and biomedicine. The scholarships are tenable in Switzerland, funding is for a 12 month (or up to 36 months for PhD scholarships only) as a tax free scholarship for full-time study. Please see Annexure A concerning the scholarship guidelines.

Selection:

• There will be a three-step review and evaluation process; i) in-house screening and ii) by an evaluation committee and iii) a final evaluation and selection mady by the Swiss Federal Commission for Scholarships
• In-house screening
  The RCD will screen applications for responsiveness and completeness.
• South African Evaluation Committee
  The committee comprising members of the SAMRC and the Swiss embassy will objectively score applicants against set criteria to determine candidates for scholarship.
• Swiss Federal Comission for Scholarships Evaluation
  The application packs consisting of three hard copies supplied by the successful candidates will be send to Switzerland where it will be reviewed independently by the Swiss expert panel for the final selcetion and awarding of the scholarships.
• Notification of applicants
  Successful candidates will be advised by May 2018 and will be required to take up the PhD scholarships in September 2018 at a university that best fits the research area of the awardee and where a research supervisor has been secured by the SAMRC.  Successful applicants will be required to send three hard copies to the Swiss Embassy by no later than 15 December 2017.

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award: The value of the scholarship will cover all expenses living costs per annum. Travel expenses to Switzerland and to South Africa or as agreed will be covered by the SAMRC.  This will be stipulated in a contract to be signed between the Scholar and the SAMRC.

How to Apply: Forward application pack by email to the SAMRC Research Capacity Development (RCD) jorene.naidoo@mrc.ac.za

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Award Providers: Swiss Confederation